Hi all! Joined the MINI family with my 2010 MCS recently and am having so much fun with him.

The only issue I have noticed is that the passenger seat is really hard to move forward when I pull that little handle/lever on the back of the seat. I'm talking about flipping the seat forward and up so someone (like my dog!) can hop into the back seat. I have to pull it *really* hard and every passenger I've had has not been able to move the seat using the handle, so I have had to do it for them. It's almost like the wire inside is not tight or doesn't quite catch to make the lever work correctly. Sorry if my description is not the best; hopefully this makes sense to someone!

Anyone heard of this or have any suggestions? I'm hoping there is a simple fix for this and I won't have to take it in to the dealer. After spending hours reading posts on this forum, I figure if there is a solution, you folks will know it! The MINI's on here are amazing, btw, and this group is awesome!

Thanks for any help!

 

Mine does the same thing. I don't know if there is a fix I just bend down and pull the lever under the seat and slide it forward that way...

 

anodyne,

Are you able to get the seat to flip forward with no problem? Just when you get it to that point it then does not want to slide?

 

I've got the same problem with my '10 Cooper. I am afraid one of these days the kids are just going to rip the handle clean off.

 

AZ,

Are your kids having trouble with the getting the handle to pull and then flipping the seat forward? Or are they able to get it that far and then just having trouble with the sliding action?

Reason I'm asking, is I've noticed that you have to be sure to pull on the handle without any another pressure being applied to the seat. If you are putting forward pressure on the seat back to push it forward and then try the handle, it can be hard. That small amount of tension created seems to mess things up from what I've experienced. Might be worth experimenting with.

 

When you pull the handle up it goes a lot further then you think it should before it engages. Like Anodyne said it seems like the wire is not tight enough. Once the seat back goes forward it slides just fine. This happens if your in the car or from the outside. The drivers side seat does not have the same issue.

I will however take your advice and check and see it we are putting tension on the seat back or not.

 

jcauseyfd,

I tried your suggestion and it definitely is much harder to use the handle when also putting other pressure on the seat! But the handle is still really hard to use on the passenger side even w/out doing that.

My seat has the same exact issue as AZmini10, it's a problem with the handle only b/c the seat slides no problem. I just went and tested it and here's what I noticed:
Driver side handle is very easy and smooth to use, when you lift the handle up, it engages with just a slight lift. There is a light click sound and then the seat flips up and the handle quickly goes back down flush with the seat.

On the passenger side, when I pull up on the handle, I pull up...and pull up...I hear the same click, but it only engages when the handle is lifted very far up, which is why it's so difficult to use. It also hurts my thumb b/c I have to use so much pressure. Then, when I let go of the handle, it's very slow to go back down in the flat position. It's like the wire inside the handle does not retract correctly. It does go down flush with the seat, but it takes noticeably longer than the driver side.

Sounds like I'm not the only one with this problem though. AZ, have you asked your dealer about it at all?

 

No I haven't contacted the dealer yet. I have a wait and see attitude about it right now. If it breaks then I will let them know. It is sorta reassuring that I am not the only one that noticed this though.